A Thought For The Week Of March 21, 2016

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." (Romans 15:13) There are all sorts of passages in the New Testament that describe the qualities that a Christian should possess. The best known is probably Paul's description of the "fruit of the Spirit" in Galatians 5, but there are several others - one of which is Romans 15:13, which speaks about joy, peace, trust and hope as characteristics of a life of faith. So my first thought upon reading this was that it was just another list of those qualities Christians should show in increasing abundance. But there's something different here; something I found meaningful. Many of these lists come across as commands or at least pleas from God - as in "you must show these qualities," or "you should show these qualities." They give us a goal to shoot for, but they can also leave us feeling guilty when we miss the mark - which is actually the literal definition of "sin." This is a prayer. "May God fill you," and "may you overflow with hope." There's no room for guilt here. There's just an encouragement to be the best that we can be, and a belief that ultimately it's God who will make these qualities come to the forefront of our lives. And, of course, if this is a prayer directed to us in the hope that we might grow in qualities like joy, peace, trust and hope then perhaps it's also a reminder that we need to be praying for others that they find the source of these qualities as well.